Email Id Verification

[Paul Rubin]

Ben Finney <ben+python at benfinney.id.au> writes:
> The point is that, having collected the email address, it's useless
> unless one actually uses it *as an email address*, by sending a message
> to it. Before then, “validating” it tells you nothing.

Right, the only legitimate use of an email address is sending legitimate
email to it.  An example might be collecting an address so that service
staff can respond to a help request.  If there is not an up-front, good
reason to want to email the address, then collecting it is not
legitimate.  An example is web sites where users have to supply
addresses to register.  This is why mailinator.com was invented, but
it's annoying even if you use mailinator.